Poolside Paranoia

Maya pressed her back against the garage wall, clutching a Tupperware container like it was a bomb. Through the slats of the wooden fence, she could see them—Tyler's gleaming torso, Chloe's perfect laugh that sparkled more than the pool water. She felt like a total creep, literally spying on her classmates like some FBI reject, but her anxiety had locked her knees in place.

"You coming in or what?"

Maya nearly jumped out of her skin. Sasha, the girl from her history class, stood there with raised eyebrows and wet hair. "I, uh, just got here."

"Cool. Bring snacks?" Sasha nodded at the container.

Maya's face burned. "My mom made fruit salad. With papaya."

"No way." Sasha actually looked interested. "I love papaya. My abuela has a tree in her backyard."

They sat on the pool edge, legs dangling in the water while Maya distributed the embarrassing fruit that suddenly wasn't so embarrassing. Sasha was funny in a dry, sarcastic way that made Maya's chest feel lighter. Tyler cannonballed nearby, creating a splash that drenched both of them.

"Ew, Tyler!" Sasha yelled, then turned to Maya with a grin. "You swimming?"

Maya hesitated. The one-piece under her cover-up felt suddenly too tight, too revealing. But Sasha was already sliding into the water, motioning for her to follow.

"The papaya can wait," Maya said, pulling off her cover-up. "I'm coming."

She slipped into the cool water, surfacing to Sasha's high-five and Tyler's apology. For the first time all summer, Maya wasn't watching from the sidelines. She was in the pool, floating through the chaos, finally part of it.